Improvement in machines for splitting railway-rails



P. & W. B. HAYDEN. Machine for Splitting Railway-Rails.

No. 219,722. Patented Sept. 16, 1879.

N NT H?- famflayfiez, 357M UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIoE PETER HAYDEN, OFNEW YORK, N. Y., AND WILLIAM B. HAYDEN, OF

COLUMBUS, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINESFOR SPLITTING RAILWAY-RAILS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 219,722, datedSeptember 16, 1879 application filed April 16, 1877. i

county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have jointlyinvented a new anduseful Improvement in Metal Rolls for Rolling and Splitting Metal Barsand Railway-Rails,which improvement is fully set forth in theaccompanying specification and accompanying drawings, in whichl t Figure1 is a front elevation of a pair of rolls constructed according to ourinvention. Fig. 2 shows a series of cross-sections, including arailway-rail before being split and the separate portions thereof afterbeing passed through the different grooves or passes of the rolls. Fig.3 is a detail view of the'scoringpass of one of the rolls and across-section of the same, illustrating the preferred mode of securingthe scoring-ring to the roll. Fig. 4E is a partial perspective view of arail after passing through thetearing-pass at 3 in Fig. 1. The specialobject of our invention is to split and reduce old steel railway-railsto merchantable bar steel at a single heat and without distorting orinjuriously disarranging the fiber thereof, or of forming a fin at thesev-' ered edge or edges, though it isalso applicable to the splittingand reduction of other metal bars.

Heretofore it has been customary in splitting steel railway-railspreparatory to reducing them to bar steel jto separate a raillongitudinally through the web into two parts at a singlepass by meanisof cutters, the head and base or flange being undisturbed or left inusually formed.

The disarrangement of the fiber hasbeen found to result in a lack ofhomogeneity in the parts of the rail, which cannot be overcome bysubsequent rollingrin further reducing said parts, and the fin cannot beupset or forced into the mass to join perfectly therewith, but must befolded thereupon by rolling, and will form a seam impossible to beeradicated.

Owing to these difficulties in the way of their reduction it has beenimpossible to convert old steel rails into first-class bar steel. Thesedifficulties occur in the splitting and reduction of other metal barsbesides railway-rails, and in overcoming them our invention consists in,first, the process of splitting a metal bar by first scoring the samepartially through, and then compressing and elongating the portion ofthe bar on one side of the score, whereby the parts of the said bar aretorn asunder, and the formation of a fin and distortion of the fiber,which would result from cutting through the bar, is avoided; second, theprocess of splitting a metal bar, substantially as hereinafterdescribed, the same consisting in first scoring the bar partiallythrough and simultaneously compressing and elongating the portions ofsaid bar on each side of the score, and then compressing and elongatin gthe portion of the bar on one side of the score, whereby the twoportions are torn asunder, and the forming of a fin and distortion ofthe fiber ordinarily resulting from cutting through metal are avoided,and the severed edges left in condition to be subsequently rolled smoothwithout seams; third, rolls provided with a pass with scorers forscoring the rail or bar at or near its center and simultaneouslyreducing the portions on both sidesof the score with a pass for tearingthe two portions asunder, and with a series of passes for effecting thereduction of the severed portions, substantially as hereinafterdescribed.

To split and work up a rail, bar, or bloom we form the rolls with suchshaped grooves as required by successive action to give the parts thedesired size and cross-section.

In the accompanying drawings, the letter A designates a pair of metalrolls 'adapted for reducing steel railway-rails, and B thejournalsthereof. I y

The numerals 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,7, it 8, and 9 designate the variouspasses of the rolls and indicate the order of their use.

In Fig. 2 the letter E designates across-section of a railway-railcommonly known as a T-rail. Such a rail, after being heated, is to bepassed through pass 1 of the rolls, its base being flat on the lowerroll. This reduces the rail to a proper height to be passed through 2.

At about the middle of pass 2 there is in each roll a scoring knife, M,the preferable manner of securing which will be hereinafter described.These knives or scorers are of such a height as simply to score the webof the rail or bar on each side on directly opposite lines, but not tocut through the rail or bar; and the grooves on each side of the scorersare of such size and the rolls so set as to reduce and elongate theportions of the rail or bar on each side of the score simultaneouslywith the formation of said score, so that a corresponding elongation andtension of the fiber of the parts will be produced from edge to edge,and said fiber will not merely be elongated and deflected at the severededges by the crushing or drawing action of the scorers.

The letter F, Fig. 2, indicates the cross-section of rail after passingthrough pass 2, the web being scored longitudinally on each side, butthe two parts not severed. Now, to separate these two parts, the scoredrail is passed through pass 3, the groove on the left of scorer M beingof such size as to permit the base portion 0 of the rail to pass easilyand without reduction, while the groove at the right of the scorer M isof such size as to compress and elongate the head portion D of the rail,and, consequently, to tear it from the part c, as illustrated at Fig. 4on the line of the score.

The scorers M may, in a machine for splitting thick bars or rails withvery thick webs, be high enough to give the score an additional depth asthe bar or rail is put through pass 3; but usually we prefer that saidscorers shall simply form a partition of the pass and serve as a guide.The parts being thus separated, the part c is then run through pass 4,and assumes the cross section, as approximately shown at G, and the partD should be simultaneously run through pass 6, assuming approximatelythe cross-section shown at I. The two parts may then be successivelypassed through pass 5, assuming the cross section shown at H. Then thetwo parts maybe passed simultaneously through passes 7 and S, andreduced to cross-section as shown at J K, and if further reduction isdesired the parts may be successively passed through pass 9 and assume asmaller cross-section, as indicated at L; or one of the parts may bepassed through pass 9, and the other left as formed by a preceding pass.

The grooves 7, 8, and 9 are of such shape and relative arrangement as tocompress all the parts of the bars toward a central line, thus making avery compact bar.

The forms of the various passes may, of course, be varied to producebars of desired shape and size.

In providing the rolls with the scoringknives, we preferably make steelrings of such size and form as may he required for the work to beperformed; countersink or make holes near their inner edges, as shown atm, Fig. 3.

The rings should be of sufficient breadth to be firmly held by thecast-iron, and when properly prepared, they are placed in the sand moldsmade for the rolls at the points dosired-that is, at about the middlesof the passes 2 and 3-and extending inward into the cavity of the molds.

When the molten metal is poured into the molds, it flows around theinward-projecting portions of the rings and into the countersinks orholes, embracing the inner edges of the rings and holding them firmly.

While we have found this method of securing the scorers very efi'ective,we do not claim it as our invention, and may use other methods as well.

The results obtained by our improved pro cess and devices are veryimportant.

The splitting of a metal bar by our process and by means of our devicesin process of its reduction in size, facilitates the operation, leavesthe metal where sundered in a perfect condition for subsequent rolling,and enables the operator to produce two or more perfect bars free fromseams or defects caused by fins, and all at one heat and in one pair ofrolls.

It is obvious that a great saving is effected in fuel and labor in theworking of a large bar or bloom, when it is to be split upto formseveral smaller bars, or in the reworking of railroad bars. These, owingto their peculiar shape, (being mostly of the T-form,) composed of thickand thin masses, cannot be successfully formed into round or square ironbars as a whole, as the welding of the parts would be imperfect; but bymeans of our process and devices they are so divided and worked thatperfect bars are produced.

What we claim is- 1. The process of splitting a metal bar by firstscoring the same partially through, and then compressing and elongatingthe portion of the bar on one side of the score, whereby the parts ofthe said bar are torn asunder, and the formation of a fin and distortionof the fibers which would result from cutting through the bar areavoided.

2. The process of splitting a metal bar, substantially as hereindescribed, the same consist-ingin first scoring the barpartiallythrough, and simultaneously compressing and elongatin g theportions of said bar on each side of the score, and then compressing andelongating the portion of the bar on one side of the score,

whereby the two portions are torn asunder, a series of passes foreffecting the reduction and the forming of a fin and distortion of theof the severed portions, substantially as defiber ordinarily resultingfrom cutting through scribed.

metal are avoided, and the severed edges left PETER HAYDEN. in conditionto be subsequently rolled smooth WILLIAM B. HAYDEN. without seams.Witnesses for Peter Hayden:

3. Rolls provided with the pass, with scorers J AMEs T. GRAHAM, forscoring the rail or bar at or near its oen- ALEX. F. ROBERTS. ter, andsimultaneously reducing the portions Witnesses for W. 13. Hayden: onboth sides of the score, jointly with the pass J AMES Y. GLENDENIN, fortearing the two portions asunder, and with CHAS. BAKER.

